BW Explains: All You Need To Know About Ajay Banga, India-origin President Of The World Bank

Ajay Singh Banga an Indian-origin, American business executive was appointed as the 14th President of the international financial institution, World Bank on 3rd May for a five-year term beginning from 2 June, 2023.

While the international bank looks forward to working with Banga, here’s a quick overview of his profile.

Banga's Indian Roots

Born in a Sikh family from Punjab, Banga was born in the Khadki cantonment of Pune, Maharashtra. His father is a retired Indian army lieutenant-general and his younger brother MS Banga is a successful Indian businessman. He completed his schooling in Shimla and Hyderabad as his father’s army posting and later went on to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in Economics from St. Stephen's College Delhi. He has done post-graduate programme in management at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. 

Later in the year 2007, Banga was naturalised as a US citizen.

Recognition In India 

The government of India awarded Banga the highest civilian honour, Padma Shri in 2016 for his distinguished achievements globally.

Rising Career Graph

Started as a management trainee at Nestle in 1981, Banga’s position to the World Banks president's coveted chair has a working history of many years spanning from sales, marketing, and general management. 

His debut with PepsiCo during the Indian post-liberalisation period is considered remarkable working majorly for the beverage giant’s fast-food franchises launch, including Pizza Hut and KFC in India. 

Later his career took a major push after serving as a trainee debt collector with American multinational, Citigroup, where he was appointed as the CEO of the company and successfully carried the title from 2005 to 2008.

He is currently the vice chairman at General Atlantic and has served as the executive chairman of Mastercard, after having previously been the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the company from July 2010 until 31 December, 2020. 

Banga’s other ventures include the chairmanship of Netherlands-based investment holding company Exor and of the public-private partnership for Central America with US Vice President Kamala Harris. Further, the multi-talented business executive had responsibly handled the US-India Business Council (USIBC) as a chairman and is now leading the chairmanship of the International Chamber of Commerce.

Road To World Bank’s Presidency

Banga was nominated for the World Bank’s president post by US President Joe Biden in late February 2023. He was the sole contender to replace Chief David Malpass, an economist and former government official serving as president of the World Bank Group since 2019. Banga’s succession came after a four hours-long interview with World Bank board members.

The final decision came in a vote by 24 of the board's members, with Russia abstaining, instead of the usual consensus-based process, according to sources.

The decision was welcomed by Biden he said, "Ajay Banga will be a transformative leader, bringing expertise, experience, and innovation to the position of World Bank President”.